support group for moms Image courtesy of  Wikimedia Commons

If you're a mother, you probably know how true the title of this post is — we moms need our fellow moms, right?

Think about it — your own mother is a mom, and when you became one yourself, it's likely that you turned to her for help, guidance, support and prayers. (I know I certainly did — even after giving birth to my first child! With three kids now, I still turn to her today, on many occasions!)

When I became a mom, I felt like I had become part of a "club" — a sisterhood of sorts. And it wasn't limited to moms who were of the same nationality or belief or religion. It was (and still is) a global community.

I remember my first months as a mother to my first child.

Our family was still on mission in Timor Leste at the time, and there were times when I still felt "isolated" as newbie mom, even if my own mom was there with us. I didn't have access to parenting magazines or books (save for the ones I had brought with me, mostly about pregnancy), and our Internet access at the time was very limited.

What I would do then was browse through different parenting sites (Babycenter was one of my favorites!), and copy and paste articles into Word so that I could read them later.

I'd do the same thing for "mommy blogs" that I accidentally discovered online (at the time, I didn't even know that they were "mommy blogs!"). One of my go-to sites then was the Babylicious site, which is run by a Malaysian mom. I loved reading about her parenting adventures, and could relate to some of her stories, being an Asian mom myself.

It's this "moms supporting moms" thing that actually led me to start blogging. Wanting to share our parenting journey with others, my blog became my new "mission field" of sorts — I wanted to reach out to other moms, and "support" them by sharing my own experiences.

Why is it important to get mom-to-mom support?

There are so many possible answers to this question, but let me give you just a few:

1. It's easier to relate to someone who's already "been there, done that."

Enough said. Isn't this oh so true? :)

2. Other mothers' insights and experiences can help shed light on our own journey as moms.

Whenever I have doubts about my parenting, our homeschooling, and other matters, it always helps to hear from other moms, especially those who are more "experienced" than me.

3. It takes a village to raise a child.

I have found this proverb above to be essentially true. I actually wrote a whole post about why we sometimes need the "village" two years ago, when our youngest child was sick. I also wrote about how the "village" helps me as a homeschooling, work-at-home mom.

The vision of a "village" of moms around the world, helping and not "hurting" one another, is actually one of the reasons why I joined communities like World Moms Blog, Make It Blissful, and, of course, CatholicMom.com. I wanted to be "connected" to other moms somehow, in a more concrete way, and reach out to them as a sign of support and solidarity.

Let's agree on one thing then, shall we?

This motherhood thing is not easy, and we need all the help we can get, that's for sure. So let's agree on just one thing — that we'll do our best to support one another, no matter what our differences may be.

I'm not going to write about all the different "mommy wars" and issues that have been at the forefront of parenting sites and networks lately — at least, not now, not here, anyway. (I may do so in the future — let's wait and see!)

What I ask for now is just an understanding that we all have our challenges, and "picking on one another" won't help at all. Instead, let's just do what we can to help one another out, and to show one another support and love.

An invitation:

Catholic conference for moms

If you're a mom who needs support, encouragement and inspiration, I invite you to join me and other presenters at the Catholic Conference 4 Moms, an online event spearheaded by fellow CatholicMom.com contributor Tami Kiser. Here's a video about the conference, with Tami herself inviting you to join us:

http://youtu.be/HKe6CLqeUOg

Working with Tami has been such a blessing, and her example of patience and perseverance has showed me what it really means to be supportive and understanding of other moms!

The online conference is totally FREE, and you can find more details about how it works here. Please do register and share it with your fellow Catholic moms, too! :) We pray that it will be a blessing to you all, as much as it has been a blessing to us to be part of the Presenters team!

The support of other people — whether virtually or in real life — is truly crucial when it comes to parenting and our Catholic faith, so let's take the time to seek it and give it. May these words of Saint Paul to the Thessalonians inspire and encourage us to do so, starting today:

Catholic conference for moms Screen shot from the USCCB website

How do you show your support to other moms? Let's discuss different ways in the comments!

Copyright 2015, Tina Santiago Rodriguez

Note: Part of the post originally appeared on TrulyRichMom.com.

First photo: Women Outside the Church at Ruokolahti, Albert Edelfelt, 1887, Public Domain, on Wikimedia Commons